1991

An air of oppression and dread gradually grows in this atmospheric short from Linas Žiūra, set on a Lithuanian border post in 1991. An intertitle fills us in on details of the general political climate when, following the declaration of independence of the country from the Soviet Union, border posts became the target of attack from Russian forces. The Lithuanian government urged non-violent resistance in response.

We see that in action the film's opening minutes as we look through the camera lens of a Soviet soldier photographing border guards at a Lithuanian checkpoint, the group silently defiant. "Will you photograph the one that you burned?" one asks, referencing a cabin that we haven't seen yet.

Žiūra captures the strange mix of boredom and alertness that haunts these places. On the one hand, little is happening - a sweet is shared, there's banter about an upcoming wedding - but on the other, anything could happen at any moment.

The writer/director also works as a cinematographer - and shoots alongside Ugnius Tuleikis here. The pair use pools of light particularly well, the glow from a cigarette and car brake lights, both reminders of the fire we did not witness. Žiūra also employs distance well. A shot of trees reminds us how isolated this situation is, while middle-distance shots give a sense of unseen surveillance. All the while the score from Agne Matuleviciute (Isaac) offers a broody and unsettling undercurrent.

Real footage from the period starkly reinforces the fact that the threat was not an empty one.